Well, once again, Europe steps ahead of us on the road of progress. Air France is doing limited testing on allowing passengers to use their mobiles while on the plane. The complications are considerable: sound quality is bad due to the method they use of conducting the signal to the towers. People who don’t need phones on the plane don’t want them on planes. And then there is the price: almost $5/minute in roaming charges at this point. That should cut down on the chatter.
People lament that there is no escape from the constant talking, ringing, and communicating that goes on in the busy modern world. Planes are a sort of last vestige of relative isolation (though they are not quiet exactly) and they’d like to keep them that way. A noble sentiment, but futile, I think. We all know that eventually this is going to happen, whether it’s this year or a few down the line. Certainly no more than five. My guess is they’ll have a cell phone seating section or possibly a “lounge” of some kind set aside for the purpose. Don’t be like Mulder and Scully, people: don’t fight the future.